Pneumatic sheet-lifting device for automatic sheet-feeders of printing-machines.



H. HEENSS.

PNEUMATIC SHEET UFTING DEVICE FOR AUTOMATIC SHEET FEEDERS 0F PRINTINGMACHlNESr APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5.1917. L259,622. Patented Mar. 19,1918.

2 SHEETSSHEET l.

H. HEENSS.

PNEUMATIC SHEET LIFTING DEVICE FOR AUTOMATIC SHEET FEEDERS 0F PRINTINGMACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5.1917.

1,259,622. Patented Mar. 19, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

HEINRICH HEENSS, OF BERNE, SWITZERLAND.

PNEUMATIC SHEET-LIFTIH'G DEVICE FOR AUTOMATIC SHEET-FEEDERS OF PRINTING-MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 19, 1918.

Application filed June 5, 1917. Serial No. 172,920.

To all whom it may cmwe-rn:

Be it known that I. HEIXRICH HEENSS ereetor, a citizen of the GermanEmpire, and residing at Berne, Switzerland, have. invented certain newand useful Improvements in lneun'iatic Sheet-Lifting Devices forAutomatic Sheet-Feeders of Printing- Machines. of which the following isa specitication.

My invent ion consists in a pneumatic sheet lifting device which willtake up sheets from a pile and will present the same to the sheetfeeding device of a printing machine, a folding machine or othe'apparatus.

The annexed drawing represents one embodiment of my invention as appliedto an automatic printing press whereof only the feed table and the papersupporting table have been shown.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my device in its starting position.

Fig. 2 is a plan of Fig. 1.

l igs. 3 and l are side elevations in two different: positions and Fig.is a side elevation of a part of Fig. 4: as seen from the left.

1 designates a side part of the machine frame of an automatic printingpress, 2 the paper table located between the two side frames andcarrying the pile of sheets 3. l is the feed table with its upper endnear the usual conveying roller 5 above which a con tact roller 8 ismoved upward and downward by means of an eccentric 7 and a link andlever device 6. 9 is a head board for the pile of sheets 3. All theseparts are old.

A shaft 11 journaled at its center within a bracket fast to the sideframe 1 is provided on one side of said bracket with an arm 12 and onthe other side with an arm 13. Arm 12 is connected by means of a rod 14with a slotted lever 15 so as to be rocked to and fro with an unvariableplay by a crank disk 16. For the purpose of regulating the play of arm12 and thereby the rocking movement of the hereinafter describedsuctitm-nozzles toward the pile of paper sheets. the lower link-bolt ofrod 14 is made adjustable within the slot 11" of lever 15. The shaft 11is made hollow at that end which carries arm 13. This end is connectedwith a suction pipe '18 of a pump not shown. From' shaft 11 alongitudinal bore 19 leads into a hollow link pin :20 whereonto the oneend of a pipe 21 acting as connecting rod is pivoted while its other endleads into a pipe 23 having a numher of suction nozzles 22 and carryingat each end an arm 2% direct-ed downward and between these two arms athird arm '25 at an angle relative to arms 2%. The arms '24: are pivotedon an axis 26 (Fig. the extended centerline of which exactly coincideswith the hind edges of the free ends of the suction-nozzles. The axis 26is resting within the prongs of a downwardly pointed fork 27 pro ectingfrom a slide 28 which is slidable lengthwise on a rod 29. This guide rod29 ends in a head 30 which is journaled within the bracket 10 on shaft11. The lengthwise movement of the slide is effected by means of aknee-joint whereof arm forms one part while the double connecting rod 31which is linked to the arm 25 and to an upwardly projecting lug 32 ofslide 28 forms the other part. The lengthwise movement of the slide 28is caused by the stretching of the said knee-joint, when the suction rod523 is turned about the axis 26 by connecting rod 21 and lever 13. Thebending of the knee-joint 25,31 is caused by the running-up of a pair offriction-rollers on two curved guiding rails 3i rigidly fast to bothsides of head of the guide rod 29, said rollers being provided on lugscast on to the rods 31 of the kneejoint.

By means of two arms 35 a hollow rod- 36 fitted with blowing-nozzles 37is connected rigidly fast, with the suction rod These blowing-nozzlesare located between the suction nozzles 22 and are with their lower endsbent toward the same. The apertures of the blowing-nozzles are at thesame height with those of the suction-nozzles and are each provided witha shield 38 flush with the lower ends of the suction-nozzles forpreventing the upward escape of the escaping air. la order to lift thesuction-nozzles to gether withaspirated sheet of paper over the upperedge of the head board 9 during the transporting of said sheet towardthe feed ing table and in order to move the nozzles again onto the pilewhen returning a pu sher, rod 39 which is moved up and down by means ofa cam l3 and of a lever 41, i2 pivoted on a pin 40 fast to the frame ishearing against the slide 23 from underneath.

The operation of this sheet lifting device is as follows:

Upon the starting of the device the suction-nozzles are polntingvertically downward at the pile, the knee-joint 25, 31 is almoststretched out and the slide 28 has not yet quite reached the end of itsbackward movement which is limited b a buffer-ring 44 sleeved on to theguide ro' 29. The suction-nozzles in their starting. position as shownin Fig. 1 are acting on the top sheet of the pile. At the same time,under the action of the crank disk's l0 turning to the left in Fig. 1and by means of the parts 15, 14, 12, 11, 13, 21 and 24 thesuction-nozzles will be swung about the axis 26 backward toward the pileof sheets whereby the front edge of the aspirated sheet will be bentsomewhat upward. This will separate the aspirated sheet from thesucceeding sheet or will at least start the separation and will renderit surer. During this swinging movement the knee-joint 25, 31 will bebent upward into the position of Fig. 3 and the guide rods 29 will bepushed upward by the pusher-rods 39 until the apertures of thesuction-nozzles will have arrived above the upper edge of the head board9. At this moment the blowing-nozzles 37 will begin working and theescaping compressed air will blow against the edge of the aspiratedsheet and underneath it while retaining on the pile the succeedingsheet. During the swinging of the suction-nozzles the blowingnozzleswill not change their position relative to the suction-nozzles so thatthe blowing air will always strike only against the aspirated sheet andonto the succeeding one. While the suction-nozzles 22 are swingingforward, the knee-joint 25, 31 will be stretched out again and when ithas done so it will exert a strain on slide 28 owing to the continuedforward swinging (to the left) of arm 13. The suction andblowing-nozzles cannot swing farther forward and will therefore be movedforward to ether with the slide 28 and Will take the aspirated sheetalong with them (Fig. 4) introducing it between roller 5 and contactroller 8. Now the sucking action of the nozzles 22 is interrupted, whilethe contact rollers 8 will swing downward and will help to convey thesheet to the feed-table. In the meanwhile the suction andblowing-nozzles will be moved again backward. When they have almostreached their backward end position the pusher-rod 39 will sink againand the suction-nozzles 22 will be lowered unto the new top sheet of thepile that is to their starting position.

The sheet lifting device may of course be arranged to operate in such away that the sheets are conveyed in an opposite direction. In that casethe blowing-nozzles have to be provided on the opposite side of thesuctionnozzles and the curved rails 34: causing the bending of theknee-joint have to be arranged so as to cause the rollers 33 to run upthe rails in an opposite direction. The crank disks 10 will also have toturn in an opposite direction. Otherwise the other parts will be thesame; the device may be employed for all kinds of printing machines withautomatic sheet feeders. \Vith such a device a working capacity of from5000 to 6000 sheets an hour from the thinnest sheet to the thickestpasteboard-like paper may be obtained.

I claim as my invention 1. A pneumatic sheet lifting device for printingpresses and other purposes, comprising in combination with a suctionpump a suction conduit, a hollow suction pipe pivotally connected to andin communication with the said suction-conduit, suction nozzles arrangedon said suction pipe, means for rocking the same to and fro toward andaway from a pile of sheets, a second hollow pipe rigidly connected tothe said suction pipe, blowing nozzles provided on the said secondhollow pipe so as to occupy a definite position relative to the saidsuction nozzles, a pressure conduit communicating with the said secondhollow pipe, pivoted guide rods, slides movable thereon, an axis carriedby the said slides, arms connecting the said axis with the said suctionpipe, a knee-joint pivoted to the said slides and the suction pipe,means for moving the said slides along the said guide rods, supportingrods bearing against the said slides, and actuating means adapted toalternately lift and lower the said supporting rods, substantially asdescribed.

2. A pneumatic sheet lifting device as set forth in claim 1, in which inconnection with the said blowing nozzles shields are provided so as toprevent the upward escape of air.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature in the presence of twowitnesses.

I HEINRICH HEENSS.

Witnesses:

Hans Rmnnnnnncnr, Fmnnmcrr Cnonme.

